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A History of Brooklyn In 20 Objects (“Objects” Being Very Loosely Defined)

Inspired by the New York Times‘s “A History of New York in 50 Objects” which was inspired by the British Museum’s radio series on the BBC “A History of the World in 100 Objects,” I decided to put together a history of Brooklyn in 20 objects. While the Times and the British Museum spoke with historians and museum curators to compile their lists, I spoke with the voices in my own head—of which there are MANY who possess varying degrees of authority—and came up with a collection of Brooklyn icons that are no less exalted for not being chosen by an expert.

Fuck the experts. This is Brooklyn. This is how we get things done here.